No Sandi Toksvig on Cambridge shortlist

It seems it was just press speculation. The shortlist to be the next Liberal Democrat candidate for Cambridge is:

• Tim Bick
• Belinda Brooks-Gordon
• Rod Cantrill
• Julian Huppert
• Sian Reid
• Julie Smith

Cambridge News has more about each of them.

The most enthusiastic press speculation came from the East Anglian Daily Times:

Casting their net to find a successor to one term MP David Howarth in Cambridge, starry eyed Liberal Democrats have alighted on broadcaster, comedienne and children's story writer Sandi Toksvig and human rights campaigner Shami Chakrabarti.

Probably because either would have made a better story as candidate than a competent local councillor.

There was, however, a certain wistful quality to the denial Toksvig issued in The Times earlier this month:

There has been some speculation that, with David Howarth departing as MP from the safe Liberal Democrat seat of Cambridge, Toksvig may stand: “Sadly, that’s nonsense,” she says. “But had it been in five years’ time, it might well be that I would have said, ‘Yes’.

I want to retire from showing off but I don’t want to retire from doing something useful with my life. So I’m not saying it’s out of the question that I may have a political career in the future. Or I might work full-time for a charity.”

So watch this space.